War of the Scars
by rowanrawr
Summary: The shadows. They had found me. After running for so long, they had finally caught up. And what could I do? This was my destiny. This was how it was always going to end... Books/Manga. AU. ABANDONED FOR THE TIME BEING.
1. Chapter 1

**What's this? **

**This is the start of my new project: The re-telling of the CDF Saga, from book seven onwards. I know it's been done many times before, but I wanted to give it a go! I've actually had this planned for a long time now, but only recently sat down to type it out. **

**I don't know how long it's going to be, nor do I know how long it's going to take me. **

**But please, read and enjoy. Feedback – as always – is very much appreciated.**

* * *

** WAR OF THE SCARS**

Six years had passed. Six years since I had revealed Kurda Smahlt for the traitor he was. Six years since I had become a Prince.

We hadn't left the mountain in that time. As the youngest Prince with the most to learn, I was to stay behind with Paris Skyle and help him with the many reports that streamed in on a nightly basis.

I had learned a lot in that time. Vampire lore and history. Princes that came before. The long and complex story of the Trackers. Generals and too many names to remember.

I had attended so many meetings I had long ago lost count. Six years of seemingly endless meetings of varying importance.

Tonight was no different. Paris and I were listening to reports from a few Generals. They had no new information, but still we had to listen to them and take notes. Or I did at least. Paris couldn't read or write.

The elderly Prince called for a break after the fourth General.

I stretched my back and arms, groaning loudly. "I need to go for a run," I commented, waving my legs back and forth. I hadn't been outside the mountain for a good few weeks now.

Mr Crepsley snorted. My mentor had become my adviser when I had been invested. I often turned to him for help with different matters, and because of that he had the unofficial power of a Prince, even though he no longer had any recognisable rank within the clan. No one complained though. He was very well respected.

Paris smiled kindly at me, "You may take the rest of the night off if you wish. I do not think taking more notes will be necessary."

"It's okay, Paris."

The elderly Prince shook his head and stroked his beard. "You are young, Master Shan. You need to keep active."

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably. I knew he was right, and I certainly didn't want to turn down the chance for a few hours of down time, but Paris was old. I felt bad leaving him on his own to deal with everything.

"Larten," Paris turned to my mentor, "I order you to take your assistant for a break."

Me and Mr Crepsley laughed, and after some more persuading from Paris we decided to head down to the Sports Halls. One of the Generals had mentioned it was bitterly cold outside and snowing heavily, and I didn't fancy running in that sort of weather.

Vanez Blane was having a wrestling match with three would-be Generals when we arrived. The blind Gamesmaster was clearly winning. We only had to wait five minutes before all three of the young vampires were flat on their backs.

Vanez left them on the ground and walked over to us. He had learnt to use his other senses to detect things and people very quickly after the loss of his remaining eye. "Larten! Sire Shan!" he boomed and clapped my shoulder. "It's been much too long. How's it going?"

We talked for a little while, catching up with each other before Vanez turned back to his apprentices and I turned to the bars. In the first year after my investure, I had sparred with Arra Sails on them for hours every night. They had fast become my favourite thing to do whenever I had some time to myself.

I hopped up on one of the lower beams and stretched my legs. Arra had left five years ago with Prince Mika Ver Leth. They were helping each other: It was unsafe for a Prince to travel alone, and no one trusted Arra to go anywhere on her own after she almost lost her life in the battle with the vampaneze. Mika had been her mentor, so it made sense for the two of them to travel together.

I missed both of them, but Arra more so. We had become very close in that year. She helped me with some of my Prince duties, and helped me train with different weapons and fighting styles. Arra was the First Tracker of the clan, responsible for so many things, and holding a higher position than even the Princes. There were four other Trackers: Brynjolf, the senior member of the group, Venrys, Renly, and Fang, another rare female vampire.

They were an elite group. And very important in the war effort. They were on the front line, so to speak, gathering information, taking out more dangerous vampaneze, and generally making things easier for the rest of us.

I was making my way to the top of the bars, hopping slowly up the giant structure. Mr Crepsley was sat at the bottom, talking to another vampire. I knew my mentor missed Arra too. The two of them had become mates again six years ago, but had only had a year together before the war had really started and Arra had been called away. I felt sorry for him. The only person he really had left now was me, and I was hardly as close to him as Arra was, or Gavner Purl had been. We all missed Gavner. Things just weren't quite the same without him.

I made my way back down, going faster than before to test myself. I thought absently of Harkat Mulds, my best friend who just happened to be a Little Person. I hadn't seen much of him either recently. He was always busy helping the old quartermaster, Seba Nile, and I was always busy with Prince business. The Little Person had been suffering from nightmares and tried not to sleep at all. Seba gave him more than enough work to solve that problem, but I knew my friend was haunted by what he saw in his dreams. Shadow men, dragons, himself impaled on spikes…

"Everyone!"

I looked up at the shout. A guard had run into the hall, waving his arms and ranting about something. I was too high up to hear him clearly, but Vanez laughed heartily and Mr Crepsley looked up at me with an excited smile.

"What is it?" I called, almost falling down the bars in my eagerness.

Mr Crepsley put a hand on my shoulder when I reached him. He looked happier than he had for a long time. "Arra and Mika have returned!"


	2. Chapter 2

In our rush to get to the Hall of Princes first, we failed to hear the other news the guard had. And it was only as we ran through the great white doors of the hall did we find out.

I skidded to a halt, unable to believe my eyes.

Sat on my throne was none other than Destiny.

"Ah, young Master Shan," he grinned sickly, "and Crepsley! How convenient." He leant forward in his – _my _– seat and placed a hand on a pocket. I felt the beating of his heart-shaped watch, but it was only for a brief moment.

Mr Crepsley was beside me, and I looked to him for guidance, but he looked as confused as I felt. "Desmond," he said eventually, stiffly greeting the little meddler.

Destiny didn't reply. He just continued to stare at us. I didn't dare look away from him either: I was frozen to the spot. Or I thought I was. A push from Mr Crepsley sent me stumbling forward, but I managed to keep my footing and continued to walk towards the platform. I glanced sideways at my mentor, frowning, but he just continued to lead me along.

Now I wasn't so fixated on Destiny, I noticed Mika and Arra standing off to the side. I took a moment to study them. They both looked exhausted and had their eyes fixed on Destiny. They didn't look happy. But I was at least slightly relieved to see that neither of them had any injuries: Obvious ones, at least. The hall was completely empty save for the six of us. I guessed Destiny's sudden arrival had frightened off many people.

"Desmond tells me he has some news for us," Paris explained as we stopped just short of the thrones.

"But that can wait!" Destiny said loudly. He looked over at Mika and Arra, who both flinched. "You two can speak first."

"We don't mind hearing-" Mika started.

"I said 'speak'." Destiny cut in darkly, his gaze threatening. Apparently, he wasn't in the mood for games today.

I thought for a moment Mika was going to respond angrily (the dark Prince was certainly headstrong enough to confront Destiny) and I readied myself for a blowout, but he seemed to calm down slightly when Arra laid a hand on his arm. Mika took a deep breath and started talking quietly, "We have no news on the Lord of the vampaneze."

My shoulders dropped a bit at that. I was hoping they had found something.

"We do have quite a bit of information about their new recruits though."

"They have been blooding others recklessly and in great numbers," Mr Crepsley chipped in, and I nodded in agreement. This was old news.

Mika shook his head, "It's more than that. They're recruiting humans to fight for them."

I looked up at my mentor. He didn't look concerned, and neither did Paris. Destiny didn't seem to be listening. "I don't think humans are anything to worry about," I said slowly.

Mika just shook his head again, a strange expression on his face. "No? Not even the ones with guns?"

"They are using automatic weapons?" Paris exclaimed in disbelief.

Mika nodded slowly, and lifted the sleeve of his coat. He pulled aside some bandages to reveal two small puncture wounds. _Bullet wounds_, I thought. They looked fresh. A nauseous feeling crept over me. I glanced at Arra, who was staying unusually quiet. "You too?" I asked, feeling like I already knew the answer.

Her eyes flicked over to me, and she gave me a half smile, tapping her leg. I heard Mr Crepsley groan from beside me. Now that she had pointed it out, I did notice she wasn't putting any weight on that leg.

"I cannot believe the vampaneze would sink that low," Paris said, sinking down into his throne. He didn't seem to care that Destiny was sitting right next to him. The elderly Prince studied his hands for a moment before speaking again, "What do you know?"

Mika stepped forward, "They're calling themselves 'vampets'. The vampaneze are training them in their ways, teaching them their rules, but are allowing them to use guns. Apparently, the Lord is not against the use of such weapons."

"But that gives them an unfair advantage," I said, and I saw Mr Crepsley nod his head slightly in agreement.

"Like they care," Arra muttered, speaking for the first time.

Mika glanced back at her, and after a few seconds stepped back to her side. "They think it's acceptable because we outnumber them greatly," he clarified.

"Evens the odds," Arra added.

We fell into silence then, apart from Destiny, who was humming tunelessly and fiddling with the buttons on his waistcoat. I looked around at the others, trying to figure out what this meant for the clan. These 'vampets' would certainly make the going more difficult, but would it be more serious than that? Would the Lord be guarded by gun-wielding humans? _Being stuck inside the mountain might not be such a bad thing after all_, I thought.

Eventually Paris cleared his throat and sat up, "Is that all you have?" Mika and Arra nodded. "Your Trackers still have not found anything?" We hadn't heard anything from the Trackers for years. We assumed they were just reporting to Arra instead of us, but as Arra shook her head I realised this wasn't the case. How bad were things if even the Trackers couldn't get anywhere?

"If that's the case," Destiny all but shouted, making us all jump, "you two might as well go recover. You look like you're about to fall down, and I don't like people interrupting me."

Mika and Arra looked unsure about that. They looked torn between hearing what Destiny had to say and getting as far away from him as possible. Paris decided for them, saying, "Desmond is correct. Go and get some food and blood, and then rest. We will inform you of what we are told later." He smiled when they hesitated. "And perhaps make a trip to the medics. I can imagine you did not have time to properly treat those bullet wounds."

They glanced at each other before Arra grinned and shrugged at Mika, who only rolled his eyes and laid a hand on her back, leading her out of the hall. Leading and supporting, I saw, as she was limping very badly. I wanted to say something as they passed us (we hadn't had the chance to greet them at all) but I stayed quiet. I didn't really want Destiny to watch our reunion. A silent word seemed to pass between Mr Crepsley and Arra though, because he chuckled quietly and she looked back over her shoulder to grin at him. I caught her eye too and smiled when she winked.

"Call the others in as you go!" Destiny shouted after them. I looked at him curiously but he only laughed at me. "Big news deserves a big audience, young Shan. You'll learn that one day!"


	3. Chapter 3

**This is only a little chapter but it has a big ending.**

* * *

It didn't take long for all of the vampires currently in the mountain to file into the Hall of Princes and settle down. Seeing Destiny seemed to unnerve even the bravest of men, so much so that the first few rows of benches were left completely empty and no one dared speak. Seba, Vanez and Harkat were sat at the front of the crowd, so Mr Crepsley and I moved to sit with them.

Paris was still sat on his throne, but Destiny had stood, and was waddling around on the platform. He wasn't looking out at the crowd, but was staring intently at his heart-shaped watch. It was giving off a red glow that illuminated Destiny's face and made him look even scarier.

Quite suddenly, and without any warning, he looked up, pocketed the watch and grinned. In an ominous voice, he announced, "You have three chances to kill the Lord of the vampaneze."

No one responded. The air was thick with tension but confusion was lingering there as well. _What did he mean?_

"You had five," Destiny held out his hand, and curled his thumb into his palm. "If you hadn't killed Kurda Smahlt, you wouldn't be in this situation." A few people muttered at the mention of Kurda's name, but it only lasted a minute. We were all too eager to hear what Destiny had to say. "But you did, so you are. One chance, the _last_ chance will only happen at the very end," he folded in his little finger. "That leaves you with three."

He waddled back across the platform. I glanced at Harkat but he just shook his head.

"You know the Lord has been made a half-vampaneze," Destiny continued, "and you have been looking for him for six years. You are under the assumption that any one of you can kill him."

"Is that not the case, Desmond?" Paris asked.

Destiny laughed, "Of course not! It wouldn't be fun like that!" His gaze swept across the hall. "There are only three who can kill him."

The hall erupted into noise. I looked around at them all, now on their feet and loudly voicing their disapproval. I turned back to the platform, to Destiny, and found him staring directly at me. My stomach dropped and I could feel a deep beating, like that of a heart, in my head. On the edge of my vision I could see shadows curling in the air, floating slowly towards me. The air went cold, and the noises of the hall drifted to the back of my mind. It seemed as if Destiny and I were the only two people there.

With some effort, I tore my gaze away from him and the beating stopped. The shadows disappeared. The air didn't feel so cold anymore.

I let out my breath, pushing my fists into my knees. _What was that?_ My heart was hammering in my chest. I heard Destiny chuckle, but I didn't dare look back up at him. I could feel Harkat watching me, but I didn't look at him either. My eyes stayed fixed on my hands.

"Who are the three?" That seemed to be the main question everyone was shouting. I focused on that, on the shouting. But it didn't last very long. An eerie silence fell over the hall, and I couldn't resist looking up to see what had caused it. The heart-shaped watch was back in Destiny's hand.

Destiny continued as if the interruption hadn't happened. His gaze kept flicking back to me, though, as if he too had seen the shadows. "These three hunters have three chances to kill the Lord. If they miss all of the chances, the vampires lose the war. The final chance I mentioned earlier will come to pass if this happens, and you will one last chance to redeem yourselves," Destiny paused. "Though I would prefer that not to be the end result… They cannot receive help from other vampires, though they can, and _must_, from non-vampires." Harkat shifted in his seat as Destiny's gaze lingered on him for a moment.

"You have been very kind to tell us so much, Desmond," Paris said slowly, nodding his head to Destiny. "Would you tell us the names of the three chosen vampires?"

The little man sighed dramatically, "Oh, I suppose I should, shouldn't I?"

The tension was back in the air. It sounded as if everyone was holding their breath. I leant forward in my seat, unable to help myself: I was just as curious as to who Destiny would name as everyone else was.

"The three hunters are…"


	4. Chapter 4

**Did I fool you?**

* * *

Destiny's laughter reverberated around my head. The little meddler had left hours ago, but it felt as if he were still here, standing over me and laughing.

"_The three hunters are Larten Crepsley, Mika Ver Leth, and Darren Shan!"_

I groaned and let my head fall onto the table in front of me. This couldn't be happening. Destiny had made a mistake. I couldn't be one of the hunters, I just couldn't. I was only a half-vampire. How did that make me suitable to hunt the Lord of the vampaneze?

With another groan, I turned my head to the side and looked up at Harkat. The Little Person had decided he was going to come with us and help in any way he could. Destiny had spoken to him briefly after revealing the news of the century to us, and apparently Harkat could find out who he was in his past life if he stuck with me. _One more pressure._

"Do you know how to get to Lady Evanna's home?" Mika asked from the end of the table. He had taken the news remarkably well. We had found him and Arra in the Hall of Welcome, and had filled them in on the latest news over mugs of ale and blood. Mika had waited until we had finished speaking before simply nodding, confirming he would join us in the hunt. Arra hadn't said anything, but I could tell she wasn't happy about our task.

"Yes, I have been there on a few occasions. I will be able to direct us," Mr Crepsley replied. Destiny had told us – the hunters – to head to the cave of Lady Evanna, whoever she was. No one had bothered to explain but I didn't really care at the moment.

"How long… will it… take to get… there?" Harkat asked.

Mr Crepsley scratched the back of his head, "About six weeks if we flit."

"Six weeks?" I exclaimed. I sat up with a frown. Six weeks was long time to be travelling out in the open. We had already agreed that after visiting Evanna's we would head to the Cirque Du Freak and make that our base. I was glad about that, and was already looking forward to seeing Evra Von again. But I hadn't counted on it taking so long to get there.

"We should leave soon then," Mika stated. "Tomorrow night?"

I groaned again, and was about to protest but Arra beat me to it. "But we only just got here! Give it a few nights, at least. Plan things out."

"We've just done that," Mika replied, unconcerned. "The sooner we leave, the sooner we come back." He shrugged but Arra just frowned at him. She looked as worried as I felt.

"We need to say goodbye to everyone," I tried weakly. I wasn't so eager to leave the mountain now, and was happy to delay our departure for as long as I could. It wasn't a very princely thing to do, but I found it hard to care.

Mr Crepsley gave me a look, but Arra snapped her fingers and pointed, "Exactly! You can't just bugger off without goodbyes." At least she was willing to fight for my side.

"That won't take long," Mika said. "And we wouldn't just leave like that anyway." He looked pointedly at Mr Crepsley. I didn't know what he meant, but it had some effect on my mentor and Arra.

"Are you two going to get along?" she asked, looking worried once again. Again, I didn't understand what she meant. I was obviously missing something, and made a mental note to ask Mr Crepsley about it later. Harkat just stared down at the table: He didn't like to get involved in arguments.

"Of course," Mr Crepsley reassured her, though it didn't look like it worked. She frowned again and pulled her hands away from his. "And we will leave tomorrow night, as Mika suggested."

Mika nodded at him, "If that's the case, I'm going to get some sleep." He stood and left, throwing over his shoulder, "See you tomorrow."

"I guess we should do the same," I said after he had left. I wasn't sure I would actually be able to sleep, but it seemed like a good idea.

Arra looked ready to protest again, or go after Mika, or just do _something_, but she calmed considerably when Mr Crepsley put his arm around her. She sighed, glanced up at me and tried to smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Darren is right," my mentor said. He stood and we followed suit. "It would not do to start our adventure late."

* * *

We were ready to leave by dusk the following night.

I had packed and had managed to get a few hours of sleep before Harkat started screaming again: Another nightmare. I had woken him and then we had sat up and talked for the rest of the day. I was feeling better by the time we had finished talking and gone for some breakfast. I wasn't as worried anymore, and I was certainly less hysterical.

The only thing that nagged on my mind was the brief glimpse of shadow I had seen when I had woken Harkat. It had flickered out of the corner of my eye, but when I turned to look there was nothing. I had shrugged it off and focused on Harkat instead, but I had found myself glancing about trying to catch sight of it again. When we left our room to get some food, I had put it to the back of my mind, deciding I had more important things to worry about.

It was still bitterly cold and snowing, but a strong wind had picked up now as well. The snow felt like little razor blades of ice.

A small group had come to see us off. Paris said a few words, wishing us luck and 'even in death may we be triumphant'. He left with the group of other random vampires, leaving only Seba, Vanez and Arra. The latter was stood off to the side, frowning, but Seba and Vanez made an attempt to lighten the situation.

Vanez made me promise to come back and tell him all about our adventure (and how ugly this so called Lord will be!) and Seba gave us a little bag of medicines that he thought might come in handy. They wished us luck too, but there was nothing more to be said after that, and they left shortly after Paris.

"Will you stop sulking?" Mika asked Arra when everyone else had left. "It's not like we're saying goodbye forever." This didn't seem to help because she folded her arms and pulled a face. Mika laughed and pulled her into a hug. It was strange to see the usually dark Prince like this. They had known each other for a long time though, so I guessed it was just natural for him to behave like this.

"I can't believe you're all leaving me," she said over his shoulder. Mika pulled back slightly, but he was still holding her hands. "What am I supposed to do now?"

"Find Brynjolf and travel with him. Or Vancha. But try not to die." Mika offered.

"Same goes for you." Arra replied seriously, but smiled when Mika stroked her hair. He glanced at Mr Crepsley before placing a quick kiss on the top of her head. He studied her with a serious expression on his face, but nodded slightly after a moment and let her go. He wandered off down the trail after that, waiting a little way down with Harkat.

I pulled my coat closer as Mr Crepsley said his goodbyes. They were speaking silently again. I looked away as they kissed, a little embarrassed. "Try not to kill each other," I heard after a while and Mr Crepsley laughed. I turned back and couldn't help but smile. I had known for a long time that Mr Crepsley loved her, but it was only made more obvious when they were together.

They kissed again, quickly, and then hugged each other tightly. Mr Crepsley looked like he didn't want to let go. I laughed at that, finding the thought of my mentor being romantic hilarious. He turned and frowned at me and that just made me laugh harder.

"Well, I'm glad to see you've cheered up." Arra commented.

I grinned and then it was my turn for a hug. "I didn't get to tell you about my Trials," I said after a moment, thinking that it seemed cruel to be separated again so soon. I had passed them a few years earlier, after many long months of training with Vanez, and they had been considerably easier than the first time around, but I still had lots of stories about them.

"You can tell me when you get back," Arra replied lightly, but she pulled me a little closer.

"If I come back," I muttered glumly, my happy mood turning more serious the more I thought about our task. _This could be the last time I see the mountain_, I thought. _The last time I see Arra_.

She pushed me back and planted her hands firmly on my shoulders, "You will come back, okay?" When I didn't answer she dipped her head to catch my eyes. "You have to. If only to tell me about those Trials."

I nodded slowly, "You have to be here too, though."

"I will," she grinned. "I'll wait right here." I gave her a look and she laughed, "Okay, maybe not _right_ here."

I laughed too and then Mr Crepsley put a hand on her shoulder, "We should be going." He kissed her again and then walked off to join Mika and Harkat. I watched him go but turned back quickly to give Arra another hug.

"Stay safe, alright?" she said quietly, and I nodded against her shoulder. "And keep those two out of trouble." We pulled apart laughing.

I took a moment to stare up at the mountain that had served as my home for the past six years before Arra pushed my shoulder. "Go on, cub Prince. It'll still be here when you get back."

I nodded slowly, and then before anything else could be said, ran off down the trail to join the others. I pulled my hood up as we set off, and I didn't look back. _I'll see it all again when we get back,_ I told myself. _I'll see her again._

* * *

**Thank you all for your kind words and for taking the time to review. I'll admit seeing your reviews makes writing this even more enjoyable.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A lot of you have commented on Vancha's absence. Don't worry! He will be making an appearance later on.**

* * *

"What the _hell_ is wrong with him?" Mika complained, pulling his cape over his head and groaning.

It was the middle of the day, and we had all been woken up by Harkat's screaming. This was nothing new, though Mika complained every time it happened, and seemed unable to grasp the fact that the Little Person suffered from nightmares and couldn't help it.

"Make it stop," the dark Prince snapped. I glared at the back of his covered head. I had got to know Mika very well over the past few weeks, and one of the most important things I had learnt was that he was not very sympathetic towards others. I turned back to Harkat, who was still shouting out, and shook his shoulder. It took a few minutes, but eventually he woke up with a jolt.

He looked around, confused, "What… happened?"

I smiled at him, "You had another nightmare."

"Oh," he glanced at Mika, who hadn't bothered to turn around, and then at Mr Crepsley. He gave my mentor an apologetic grin, which Mr Crepsley returned half-heartedly. "Sorry… guys…"

"Don't worry about it," I smiled. I settled back down on the ground as Harkat got up and muttered something about refilling our water bottles.

I didn't get back to sleep though. Though Harkat never seemed to worry about his dreams for long, I was always left unnerved. It was the shadows. They seemed to creep from behind Harkat whenever he had a nightmare, but it seemed no one else could see them. They snaked through the air, swirling around the Little Person, but as soon as I looked towards him they turned their attention to me.

They were the same as the ones I had seen in the Hall of Princes when Destiny had stared at me. It scared me, but I couldn't tell anyone. It wasn't worth worrying them.

It wasn't just when Harkat had a nightmare. I saw them out of the corner of my eye sometimes. When we had been taking a break from flitting, and had walked for a few nights, they followed me, but always stayed just out of full sight. Again, when we had been talking about our task, they had come floating towards me. I had felt them that time. They were cold, and something about them made me think of death.

I sat up as the sun went down, giving up on my act of sleeping. I was exhausted. It felt like more than just the lack of sleep though. My whole body ached. Even drinking blood didn't seem to refresh me as much. I would have voiced my concern, but I didn't want to say anything in front of Mika. I liked him well enough, but he was a little too cold and distant.

For the past two weeks we had been flitting, and I had been put with Mika. He didn't seem to like Harkat very much, so my mentor took the Little Person and I was left with my fellow Prince. The only time I saw Mr Crepsley was when we made camp for the day, and I could never get him on his own.

So, for the time being, I had to keep my worries to myself.

It was agreed we would flit for another night, and then have a few days of walking. We ate a small breakfast, packed up our belongings, and then set off.

Mr Crepsley and Harkat went ahead, and Mika and I followed behind. I often got the feeling Mika wasn't happy with the speed we were travelling, that he would have liked to go faster, but he managed to control his speed and never overtook Mr Crepsley.

They had a strange relationship with each other. During our first week on the road I had observed them closely. Mr Crepsley didn't show Mika nearly half the respect he commanded as a Prince, and always spoke to him as an equal. Mika never demanded that my mentor treat him any differently, and never argued if Mr Crepsley took charge of a situation. They certainly weren't friends but neither were they at each other's throats all the time.

As far as I could figure, the only thing they had in common was Arra. Even to me, it was obvious they both cared about her, but there was something not right about it. I had asked Harkat about it when we had gone off on our own to fetch some water, but he wasn't any better informed. He seemed to like to keep out of personal affairs and advised me to do the same when it came to the two vampires we had left behind at camp. So I had left it alone. I secretly hoped Lady Evanna would have some answers.

Mr Crepsley had explained she was a very special woman, one with many talents, and Mika had snorted and called her a witch. My mentor warned me not to follow Mika's lead and call her that, but he did say she could be compared to one. Apparently, Lady Evanna and Mr Crepsley were good friends. I hoped good enough to give me an insight into Mika and Mr Crepsley's strange relationship.

As I drifted back to the here and now, I realised Mika had slowed down. He was barely flitting anymore, and soon he came to a full stop. I dropped off his back and looked around for Mr Crepsley and Harkat. I couldn't see them. "What's wrong?" I asked, spinning to get a good look at our surroundings. I had no idea how long we had been flitting for, but the sky was pitch black and the moon high.

Mika didn't respond straight away. He was staring off into the distance so I stood on my toes and stared in the same direction. I couldn't see anything though, so I moved to stand in front of him and looked out again. Still nothing.

"What are you doing?"

I jumped and spun around. Mika was watching me with an amused smile on his face. I scratched the back of my head and grinned, a little embarrassed, "I was trying to see what you were looking at."

He looked confused, "I wasn't looking at anything."

"But you were staring out there," I waved my hand behind me, motioning at the dark countryside. "You stopped flitting and just looked straight out there."

He shook his head, "Sorry. I was talking to Arra."

"What about?" I asked, and sat next to him on the ground. He didn't seem to want to continue flitting.

"We'll wait until Larten finds us. It concerns us all, so it would be unfair to leave him out of it," he replied, leaning back on his hands and looking up at the sky.

Now we had stopped, the shadows were creeping closer again. They didn't come close enough for me to feel them, but they were there. I glanced around but I couldn't focus on them. "Is she alright?" I asked Mika, pushing the shadows out of my mind and looking back at my fellow Prince.

"She's just fine," he smiled.

It didn't take too long for Mr Crepsley to find us. He looked slightly annoyed that we had stopped and that Mika hadn't bothered to tell him (they could communicate silently too, apparently). "Why did you stop?" my mentor asked when he and Harkat had sat down with us. He was still a little out of breath.

"Arra sent me some information about the Lord," Mika replied. We gasped and leaned in closer to hear what he had to say. "He's travelling with a group of vampaneze. They're his guardians, the vampaneze equivalent of us."

"If he is travelling in a group he should be easier to locate," Mr Crepsley said.

Mika nodded, "Yes. They aren't keeping him in one place, though, clever bastards. But there are fake groups and Lords parading around too, to throw us off the scent."

"So how do we know if we've found the right one?" I asked. This just seemed to make our task even harder.

"The Trackers are on it," Mika smiled. "Now they know what to look for, they can study the different groups and figure out which one we need to target."

"I thought… vampires weren't allowed… to help…" Harkat put in.

Mika shrugged, but Mr Crepsley answered for him. "They will be helping to identify him, not to kill him. Desmond did not say anything against that," he glanced at Mika, who nodded in agreement. Harkat looked unsure, but accepted the answer anyway.

"So, do we need to change our plans?" I asked, hoping that we would still get to go to the Cirque Du Freak.

Mr Crepsley shook his head, "I do not see why we should. We will carry on as we have been, and wait for more information."

"It won't take too long," Mika added.

We fell into silence and I sat back and watched the sky. It seemed to have been decided that we would travel no further tonight, so Mr Crepsley set about making a small fire to cook our food on. Mika began skinning some rabbits we had caught yesterday – he even let Harkat help him when the Little Person asked if he could do anything.

The mood in our small camp was light as we ate. We finally had some good news regarding the war, and we were happy in the knowledge we wouldn't be completely on our own in this. I even forgot about the shadows. Once we had finished, we sat quietly in our own thoughts, letting the crackling of the fire fill the silence.

"Has Arra left the mountain?" Mr Crepsley asked unexpectedly, breaking the comfortable silence. He looked at Mika, who was lying on his back, his eyes pinned on the moon above.

Mika didn't bother to turn to look at my mentor, "Yes. Vancha agreed to travel with her."

"I do not know who I feel sorrier for," Mr Crepsley replied with a laugh. Mika joined him, their laughter cutting through the night. I smiled, but I didn't quite understand what they meant. All I had heard about Vancha March was that he was not your average vampire Prince. "I take it they are not flitting?" Mika nodded to my mentor's question. The medics back at the mountain had told Arra not to flit for a while, so her leg could heal properly. We didn't expect her to take that advice on board, but it was good to hear she was being careful.

"Vancha doesn't particularly like flitting anyway, so he doesn't have a problem with walking everywhere," Mika said to no one in particular, but I realised it was meant for me. He glanced at me and I smiled at him, grateful that he was including me in their conversation.

"Why didn't Arra tell you about the vampaneze?" I asked Mr Crepsley. I didn't see why she'd tell Mika but not my mentor. They were mates after all.

"It was not my place to know," he answered. I looked back, confused, so he elaborated. "As Mika is a Prince, and as the news was from the Trackers, it was important for him to know first. If she could contact you telepathically, she would have told you too. I hold no rank within the clan anymore, Darren. It was not my place to know," he shrugged. "Not before a Prince, at any rate."

"We're all hunters, and that makes us equal," Mika continued, sitting up. "But if the Trackers find anything else, Arra will tell me first. It will then be my job to tell you. That's just the way it works."

I thought about it for a moment. "I don't get it," I said eventually, looking back up at the two full vampires.

"It is all about the position we hold within the clan," Mr Crepsley said. "But do not worry about it now. You will understand one day."

"Perhaps," Mika began slowly, seeming to dislike his own train of thought, "it would be wise for Darren to connect with Arra."

Mr Crepsley nodded in agreement, "Yes. If anything were to happen to us during this war… You would need to be in contact with someone."

I looked between the two of them, uneasy that they were talking about their possible deaths so casually. I glanced at Harkat to ask for his thoughts, but he wasn't looking my way.

"But do not worry about that now, Darren," Mr Crepsley said with a smile. "We will deal with it at a later date." He looked to Mika, who nodded. The dark Prince wasn't smiling anymore. He looked troubled and tired all of a sudden, as if our conversation had put unwanted weight on his shoulders.

I nodded at my mentor though, and he suggested we turn in for the day. Dawn was breaking through the trees: I wasn't aware we had been talking for so long.

It was agreed we would flit again tomorrow night, to catch up on what we had lost tonight, but Mika offered to take Harkat so my mentor could have a break from carrying him (the Little Person was much heavier than I was). I heard Mr Crepsley thank Mika, and then there was silence.

Before I closed my eyes to sleep, I saw the shadows hovering in front of me.

I could have sworn they were waiting for something.


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't want to seem like I'm stealing anyone's ideas here. I know this will all sound pretty familiar, but I guess we all have the same idea when it comes to Mika and Arra. If anyone is unhappy with this chapter because of that, tell me and I'll tweak it.**

* * *

"What's the deal with you and Mika?"

Mr Crepsley and I were sat on the bank of a river. We had spent the night flitting, but had cut our journey short again to restock on blood. Mika had offered to do it, and he had left an hour ago with our flasks in hand. There was a town not too far from where we had stopped so we had decided to make use of it.

Harkat had dozed off by our little campfire, which left me with some time to talk to my mentor alone. I thought about telling him about the shadows, but they had become so common by now I didn't feel frightened by them anymore. They were still there, on the edges of everything, but they didn't bother me.

Mr Crepsley raised a brow at me, "What do you mean?"

"You know," I threw a pebble into the river. "Why are you civil to him if you don't like him? And why does he treat you the same way?" I held my hand up as he opened his mouth to answer. "And don't tell me it's because he's a Prince, because it's obviously not."

He shut his mouth and looked out over the river. He seemed a little uncomfortable, but I wasn't going to let this go now. If the three of us had to travel together I had a right to know what was going on between them. "I know it has something to do with Arra."

My mentor sighed and ran a hand over his eyes, "I suppose you would have found out at some point…" he said. I waited patiently for him to continue. "You know Mika was her mentor. He blooded her when she was young, only a few years older than yourself. Mika claims that he had been watching her because she had caught his eye and he thought she had great potential; that she would go far in the clan."

"She did!" I laughed and Mr Crepsley smiled.

"Mika said he had not wanted to let that potential go to waste. So when he found her half dead in the street he did not hesitate to blood her," he shook his head. "She had been attacked and left to die. He had to make her a full vampire; it was the only way she would survive. You understand how controversial that decision was, yes?"

I nodded slowly. I had been told all about the dangers of making someone a full vampire straight away. It almost always sent the would-be assistant into a craze, and almost always killed the would-be mentor.

"Not only had Mika blooded a female – little more than a girl – but he had made her into a full vampire. It is amazing both of them survived," Mr Crepsley sighed. "Mika was very protective of her. He did not bring her to a council for many years, and avoided all contact with other vampires. He cared about her, as was only natural, but it developed into something more.

"Gavner and I were at the mountain when Mika arrived with his assistant. We had heard the stories, the rumours, but we did not believe them. Some of the things others were saying were just awful. He did not take her up to the Princes with him. Instead he left her in their room. Of course she did not stay," he smiled at the memory. "Why Mika believed she would I cannot tell you. He should have known she would not. As it was, she left and ended up finding Gavner and I."

I nodded – I already knew the three of them had been close friends. Harkat mumbled something in his sleep and we turned to look at him, but he didn't wake.

"Mika was furious when he found out she had gone," Mr Crepsley continued, looking back towards the river. "But she had not been in any danger. We were simply talking. Mika refused to see it that way. We did not see Arra again for a few nights after that, but we heard about her. The word spread through the mountain fast, and soon everyone knew to stay away from Mika's new mate or suffer the consequences."

"His mate?" I asked, confused. I hadn't heard that before.

Mr Crepsley nodded, "That is what he told the Princes, to protect her from anyone who wanted to do her harm. It was a lie, but Mika was a dangerous man, one you would not want to anger. No one questioned it. Of course, when Arra heard this for herself she was furious.

"Being the only two people she had met, she came to Gavner and I. She slept on the floor of our room for days, and came with us wherever we went. She told us that what Mika had said was all a lie," he paused and looked at his feet. There was a small smile playing on his face. "The three of us became fast friends. Months passed and she still refused to talk to Mika. Seba set up a small hammock in the corner of our room for her because it became clear she was in no hurry to leave."

My mentor tilted his head back to look at the sky, and I did the same. "By now, the whole mountain knew of Mika's deception and because of this he left. Remember, Arra was a full vampire, more than capable of taking care of herself. But she was lost when he left. She was still angry at him for what he had done, but at least he had been _there_. If something had happened she knew he was there to go back to."

"What happened then?" I asked quietly.

He sighed again, "Mika had not said goodbye, but had left her a letter. In it he said he was not sorry for what he had done – that he would have done anything to protect her – but he was sorry it had caused such a rift between them. He said he needed some time to think, but he hoped she would wait for him.

"Years passed. Vanez became her second mentor, and he was there for her when she decided to take the Trials. Gavner and I became full vampires but we stayed at the mountain with Arra. We were all very close by that point, and after much persuasion from Gavner I finally asked her to be my mate."

I smiled, clearly picturing Gavner harassing my mentor into confessing his feelings.

"What I did not know was that Mika had returned during the day, caught Arra on her own, and told her he was in love with her."

"What?!" I exclaimed loudly. Harkat made a noise and I whipped around, afraid I'd woken him. He turned over and looked ready to wake up, but thankfully he stayed asleep. I turned back to Mr Crepsley, completely shocked.

"So, needless to say, my own confession did not have quite the reaction I had hoped for. She said she needed to be on her own, and though I respected that – no matter how painful it was to hear – Mika seemed unable to respect her wishes. He demanded to know what was wrong, and when she finally relented and told him he flew into a rage. I later found out she hadn't simply told him of my feelings for her, but had told him that she returned them, and that though she loved him it was not the same as how she loved me."

Mr Crepsley paused again. He turned to look at me seriously, "He accused her of all sorts, calling her ungrateful for everything he had done for her. He was heart-broken and his pride was wounded. He truly believed that she had waited at the mountain because she loved him. Gavner and I could hear the shouting from our room – I am sure half the mountain could as well. He felt betrayed and slighted, that she could feel anything for me when I had done nothing for her."

He looked back out towards the river, and when he next spoke his voice was hard. "Mika told her he wished he had left her to die when she was human. Those were his last words to her before he left again."

I couldn't speak. I had no idea this is what I would hear when I had started this conversation.

"Arra left shortly after that. She apologised profoundly to me, telling me not to wait around. The next time we saw each other was five years later, simply a chance encounter. I knew as soon as I saw her that something had changed, that _she_ had changed, but it did not seem to matter. The next day we were travelling back to the mountain to have an official mating ceremony," he laughed softly. "Mika came back, but he kept his distance. Arra and I were together for forty-three years before I left," he held a hand up to stop me from asking the obvious question. "That is a story for another night."

I frowned but agreed and motioned for him to continue. "I thought Mika had destroyed their relationship completely, but when I saw them again at the mountain six years ago I realised this was not the case… You asked about mine and Mika's relationship. You are right in that it has something to do with Arra. It has everything to do with her.

"We treat each other the way we do because of what we have both done. We both care about Arra, we both love her, but we have both hurt her. Mika and I would do anything to protect her, to keep her safe, but we have both failed to protect her from ourselves. Do you understand?"

I nodded slowly, everything settling into place and making sense.

"Darren," Mr Crepsley put his hand on my shoulder and looked at me seriously again. "If anything happens to me during this war, Mika will take it upon himself to look after Arra _and_ you. You may be my assistant but he knows how much you mean to Arra, so he would do everything in his power to take care of you. Despite what I have said tonight, Mika is not a bad person."

"But he hurt her," I protested.

"And so did I," he answered sadly. "We have both done terrible things. If you judge him then you should judge me, too."

I found it hard to believe that Mr Crepsley would ever hurt Arra, but I didn't have the whole story yet. "I won't judge Mika," I promised.

Mr Crepsley smiled and squeezed my shoulder, "Do not dwell on what I have told you. To us, it is in the past and we would like it to stay that way…" he trailed off and looked at something over my shoulder. I turned to see Mika setting our now full flasks by our bags.

He looked over and smiled at me.

_He'd protect both me and Arra if anything happened to Mr Crepsley._

I smiled back.


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm sorry for throwing two very wordy chapters at you in a row, but I want to get all the history and stories out of the way before I go deeper into this. Also, you will all get to see my very lame attempt at humour later in this chapter.**

**You have been warned.**

* * *

"Darren?"

I looked up at Mika from across the camp. I had been trying to start a fire but wasn't having much luck, and had resorted to breaking our firewood into little chips with my nails.

"Can you help me catch some food?" Mika asked. He already had his knife in hand and had been leaving the camp before he turned back. It was almost as though asking me to help had been an after-thought. I glanced at Mr Crepsley who shrugged and continued stitching a hole that had appeared in his coat.

"Sure," I stood, stepping over the firewood and following Mika out of camp.

I had a feeling I knew why he had asked for my help. He had been watching me for a while now, gauging my reaction to things, checking my mood. I suspected he knew what I had spoken to Mr Crepsley about, and wanted to tell his side of the story. Just as I had promised, I hadn't been judging Mika, but I had been looking at him in a different light.

We crossed a stream and continued through the sparse forest. I could see a few small animals running around, and I pounced on the next one that ran by. It was a scrawny looking rabbit. There wasn't much meat on it, but it would have to do. We still had some fish left over from our camp by the river, so it wasn't necessary for us to catch a lot.

Mika seemed on the hunt for bigger game, but it soon became apparent we wouldn't find anything like that. It wasn't long before he suggested we head back to camp with our little catch: Three rabbits, a pheasant, and a pouch full of mushrooms and roots.

Mika sheathed his knife and slung the bird over his shoulder, but didn't start back towards the camp. He stood watching the sky for a moment. I waited patiently, trying to catch a good look at the shadows. They had taken to following me everywhere these nights, and it wasn't uncommon that I woke to find them hovering directly over me. They didn't scare me anymore though, so I had decided to wait them out and see if anything came from them.

"Darren?" I looked back at Mika, who was watching me carefully. "I know Larten told you about our… our past."

He almost said something different but thought better of it. I didn't know what to say, so I nodded and waited for him to talk.

"I hope you don't think badly of me," he said softly. "Just remember Arra doesn't hold anything against me. If she can forgive me, so can you."

"I don't think badly of you," I replied, my eyes on the forest floor. "I was just surprised to hear it, that's all."

Mika nodded slowly and started to walk away. I followed him, scratching my arms absently. I still ached all over but now I _itched _all over too. Mr Crepsley said it was probably a reaction to something, so I didn't worry about it.

"Mika?" he turned to look back at me. "What did Mr Crepsley do? He said that you'd both hurt her."

The dark Prince sighed and pushed his hair out of his eyes. "You know he was going to be a Prince?" I nodded. "He changed his mind at the last moment and left. Told Paris of his intentions, and though the old man was disappointed he didn't argue. He _only_ told Paris."

"He left without saying goodbye," I stated, remembering what Mika had said back at the mountain weeks ago. I had noticed it had bothered Mr Crepsley and Arra, and now I knew why.

"I know it doesn't sound like much," Mika continued. "But it crushed Arra. We weren't speaking at the time, but I couldn't help but go and see if she was okay," he smiled but it was tinted with sadness. "In a way, I owe Larten so much. If he hadn't abandoned her, I probably never would have spoken to her again. I know that sounds horrible but it's the truth.

"I helped her recover from that blow. We slowly built our relationship back up," he sighed. We had stopped just outside of our camp. I could see Mr Crepsley watching us, but he didn't interrupt. "A year later Staffen Irve, the First Tracker at the time, was killed in battle. Arra had been his Second, and all too suddenly she found herself in the position of First Tracker. Never had a female come so far in the clan, and many were unhappy with it. They wanted her to step down and let one of the male Trackers take charge. It was difficult," Mika smiled, "but she made it. I helped her through that as well."

"And then Mr Crepsley came back," I said with a grin.

Mika laughed, "Yes, and things came full circle." He put a hand on my shoulder. "I'll admit Larten isn't my favourite person in the world. But if Arra is happy then I'm willing to put up with him."

I glanced back at my mentor (who, I noticed, had managed to make a fire) and smiled, "He said that you'd look after me if anything happened to him."

Mika looked a little surprised by that, but he nodded, "We decided that very early on, yes. If anything happens to Larten, I'll be here to keep an eye on you, cub Prince."

"And Arra?"

He smiled warmly and put an arm around my shoulders, leading me into our camp, "Yes, and Arra."

* * *

I awoke the next night to the feeling of hundreds of little bugs crawling all over me.

With a yelp, I shot up and frantically brushed myself off, but it didn't help. I shook my head, trying to get them out of my hair but they wouldn't budge. I raised my arms, ready to pull my hair out but froze as I caught sight of them.

My legs were the same and as I ripped my shirt off I realised it was covering my whole body. _Hair! _My hands found my face and to my complete shock I found I had somehow grown a thick beard during the day. I yelped again, and stumbled over Harkat, falling flat on my back. For a brief moment I thought the shadows had attached themselves to me, but as I touched my arm again I reassured myself it was nothing but hair.

Harkat was sitting up, grumbling, but when he caught sight of me he laughed loudly, "_Darren_?!"

I grabbed his shoulders and shook him, "What the _hell is it_?_ Help me_!"

By now, Mika and Mr Crepsley were awake and though both looked ready to strangle me for being so loud, they laughed as soon as they saw me.

"Don't laugh!" I shouted at them, hopping from foot to foot in a complete panic. "_Help_ me!"

"It is okay, Darren," Mr Crepsley took a hold of my shoulder and held me still. He bent his head to study my eyes but straightened after only a second. He looked at Mika, "Do you think the Prince's blood is behind this?"

Mika came to stand next to him, and he tilted my head up at him, "Most certainly."

I pulled away from them, "Tell me what the _hell_ is going on _right now_!"

"You are experiencing the Purge," Mr Crepsley replied. He had turned to his bag and was fishing around inside it.

"The _what_?" I screeched.

"Calm down, cub Prince," Mika said. He took a hold of my shoulder again and held me steady. "It's nothing to worry about. We'll fix it."

I gaped at him, "Nothing to _worry about_?!" I waved my arms in his face. "I'm covered in _hair_!"

"Harkat," Mr Crepsley said calmly. "Can you fetch that bag of medicines Seba gave us?" Harkat nodded and started shuffling through my bag. My mentor had finished searching his bag, and now stood with a slim blade in his hand. I eyed it warily and tried to back away when he came towards me with it. Mika held me firmly in place. "We will explain everything after we have dealt with this," he motioned at my hair with his knife and I gulped.

Half an hour later, and after much shouting and cursing, I was looking normal again. Between them, Mika and my mentor had shaved my body clean of hair. Mika had threatened to leave me with the beard and shave my head instead when I had struggled against them for the tenth time. I had managed to stay still after that.

I groaned pitifully as Mr Crepsley rubbed some cream onto my arms. They were raw, as was my whole body, but in the bag Seba had given us was a medicine for just this occasion. The cream helped immensely. I was able to relax enough to put together a coherent sentence. "So what's going on? What's the Purge?"

"The Purge usually happens when a half vampire remains as one for a long time, roughly forty years," Mr Crepsley said. "The vampire cells in your body attack the human ones, and eventually take over."

"So I'm a full vampire now?" I wasn't sure whether I liked that thought or not.

"Not yet," Mika answered. "You're still a cub. When we made you a Prince six years ago, we gave you our blood. That probably sped up the process. You won't become a full vampire for a few more years yet, don't worry."

Mr Crepsley finished putting the medicine on me and sat back, "This is only the beginning, Darren," he glanced at Mika and they shared an evil grin. "The next few weeks will be _very_ difficult."


	8. Chapter 8

**I've just realised I've made this story much more difficult and confusing than it needs to be…**

* * *

Mr Crepsley had been right. The next few weeks _were_ very difficult.

I had stopped itching as soon as they had shaved me clean, but I would have given anything to be back in that position. My senses were going crazy. One night I wouldn't be able to taste anything, the next the slightest whisper would give me a headache. My eyes hurt in even the moonlight, and I had to walk around with a bandage wrapped over them to give me some relief.

My body still ached but that was from my bones growing and fusing. I had grown a good few inches and was now only slightly smaller than Mika and Mr Crepsley. I looked more like a teenager now rather than a child, which I was very happy about.

The worst part of the Purge though was the amount of energy I had. I ran miles every night, going ahead of the others and then doubling back. When we made camp I climbed trees, did push-ups, swan in rivers, _anything_ to burn off the excess energy.

After three weeks, everything stopped. My senses calmed down, I stopped aching and growing, but most importantly I ran out of extra energy.

I had out grown all of my clothes though, and my feet poked out from the ends of my shoes, so the next time we made camp by a town I went shopping. I found a supply store close to the edges of town, and picked up some new clothes, a new pair of shoes, and a new coat.

Mr Crepsley was waiting for me on the edge of the forest. He had gone with me to restock on blood while I shopped. "What do you think?" I joked as I met him, waving an arm at my new clothes.

He studied me carefully for a moment, a thoughtful look on his face, before he coughed and replied, "You look older." There was a hint of pride in his voice.

I laughed and clapped his shoulder, and we started back to camp.

* * *

A few nights later and we arrived at Lady Evanna's.

The night sky was cloudy, the moon and stars hidden away. As we neared her home, Mr Crepsley told me a little bit more about her. "She has many magical abilities, though she spends most of her time inventing things and breeding frogs."

"Frogs?" Mika asked sceptically. "I haven't heard that before."

Mr Crepsley shrugged, "It is a hobby."

"If she's a witch –" I began but Mr Crepsley cut me off with a hiss. I rolled my eyes, " – a _magical being_, is she related to Destiny?"

My mentor frowned, "He… created her. She is a mix of Destiny, vampire, and wolf. Desmond created her so that one day she would bear the young of a vampire. The only way vampires will ever be able to have children is through Evanna."

"Has she… had any children… yet?" Harkat asked.

"No, she is yet to choose a mate," Mr Crepsley answered. "Many vampires have sought her out for hundreds of years, but she has turned down every one of them," he stopped walking. "We are here."

I looked to where he had motioned, but I could only see trees. I glanced at Mika and Harkat, but they both looked blank too. I stared harder but still couldn't see a house or anywhere that looked inhabited. I opened my mouth to ask what we were supposed to be looking at but was cut off by a sudden shout.

"Vampires!" someone yelled and I jumped back. The forest I had just been looking at had transformed into a whole new landscape. In the place of trees there was a swamp and further back a cave in the side of a rock face that _definitely _hadn't been there a minute ago. "Why is it always bloody vampires?"

A figure came out of the cave followed by hundreds of frogs of different sizes. "Be careful not to touch them," Mr Crepsley warned as we made our way through the swamp. "They are poisonous." Harkat and I shared a glance.

"At least you lot are better looking than most of your kind that comes crawling my way." I looked up as we landed on solid ground. My eyes almost popped out of my head as I got a proper look at the figure who was talking. She was the ugliest woman I had ever seen. She was barely taller than Harkat, but was just as wide, if not larger, around the waist. There was hair all over her, much like me when I had gone through the Purge.

I could tell Harkat and Mika were just as shocked as I was, but Mr Crepsley stepped forward to greet her. He looked completely calm, even a little happy at the sight of her. I didn't know how anyone could be happy to see _this_.

"Larten! It's been far too long!" the woman – if you could call her that – strode up to him and was suddenly the same height as Mr Crepsley. She kissed his cheek and he scratched his scar shyly.

The woman shrunk down to her normal height and turned her attention to Mika. "The dark Prince. It's a pleasure," she held out her hand. I noticed with a start that the nails of her little fingers were much longer than the rest of her nails. Almost like little blades.

I could tell Mika was having a hard time trying not to frown. He looked like he would have rather been anywhere else but here, and I thought for a moment he was going to refuse her hand. "Lady Evanna," he greeted and his voice was tight. He gripped her hand for all of a second and then let go again.

Evanna looked amused at his reaction but didn't linger on him. "Harkat Mulds. It is good to see you again."

"Again?" Harkat asked. "I have… been here… before?"

"Oh, yes," Evanna nodded. "A few times, actually. I enjoyed your company. Of course, you were in your old body."

"You know… who I was? Can you… tell me?" Harkat's voice was hopeful, but Evanna dashed those hopes with a shake of her thick head.

"It's not my place to say. You have to find out on your own," the way she dismissed him was uncaring, as if she disapproved of him. She finally turned to me, "You look older than I thought you'd be."

"He was struck by the Purge on the way here," Mr Crepsley explained.

Evanna hummed thoughtfully. As she studied me I noticed her eyes were different colours; one brown, one green. I felt like I should say something, but the only thing I could think of was the word 'witch'. Mr Crepsley would kill me if I said that but her gaze was so intense, I had to break the silence.

"So, you're a witch?"

I heard Mr Crepsley curse and Mika chuckle, but before I could turn to them I was knocked off my feet by Evanna, who had transformed into some sort of wild beast. It loomed over me and I scrambled backwards. "_What did you call me_?" it screeched and snapped its fangs at me.

I started spluttering some sort of response, but the beast whirled away from me and bore down on Mr Crepsley and Mika, who was unfortunately stood next to him. "_You told him this!_"

"I told him _not _to call you that, Evanna, I assure you," Mr Crepsley said. He backed away from the beast, his hands open in a gesture of peace. The beast growled. Mika had stopped chuckling by now and was instead half hiding behind my mentor. I had never seen him look so scared.

The beast spun back around to me in a flash and before I could get up off the floor it had pounced at me, jaw wide and fangs gleaming. I yelped and covered my face with my hands, but I wasn't bitten in half. Instead I heard an airy laugh. I slowly lowered my hands, afraid I was walking into a trap. The beast had disappeared and in its place was a beautiful woman in a long flowing dress. My mouth dropped open in astonishment.

"Appearances," the woman said slowly, "can be deceiving. Remember that, young Shan."

"Evanna, please stop teasing my assistant," Mr Crepsley asked kindly. He gave me a look and I grinned an apology.

The beautiful woman – Evanna, apparently – turned to my mentor. "Would you rather I tease you instead?" she winked and blew him a kiss. Mr Crepsley blushed to the roots of his hair and scratched his scar again.

Mika looked extremely unimpressed, "He has a mate, you know."

Evanna turned to him but he didn't even flinch. I didn't know who he was angrier with, but he certainly looked ready to hit my mentor. Harkat helped me to my feet and I got ready to intervene in case Mika flipped out.

"I'm well aware of that, yes," Evanna answered eventually and was suddenly her 'normal' self again, the dress replaced by some very dirty looking ropes. She glanced at Mr Crepsley, who was desperately trying to compose himself as fast as possible. "That game is much more fun when you're on your own, Larten," she added innocently and strolled away into her cave.

There was an awkward silence in which Mika looked ready to explode and Mr Crepsley coughed uncomfortably. Harkat and I didn't dare move or even breathe. My mentor looked to Mika with his hands out again, trying to display peace, "Mika –" he started but was cut off as Mika swung his fist into Mr Crepsley's jaw. He went down but Mika dragged him back up again with a growl.

"If you weren't one of the hunters of this Lord of the _fucking_ vampaneze I would kill you," Mika threatened. His voice was low and dangerous, and I made a mental note to _never_ make my fellow Prince angry. He let my mentor go and stalked off after Evanna: He looked like he had decided being in her company was better than being out here with us.

* * *

Evanna couldn't stop cackling. "I can't believe you hit him!" she shrieked, holding her immense stomach as she laughed.

"I fail to see the funny side of this," Mr Crepsley muttered, holding a hand to his jaw. It wasn't broken but there was a large bruise forming. His lip had split too, and he had actually spat out a tooth.

Mika couldn't quite meet my mentor's eyes. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, though he didn't exactly sound sorry. He seemed more embarrassed at his own sudden outburst of temper than he did about hitting Mr Crepsley.

Evanna had explained to us that she had been joking. That 'game' of theirs went back many years, when Mr Crepsley was still a half vampire. He had got tipsy on wine one night and tried to kiss her while she was in that form. From then on, whenever he had visited she always made a point of embarrassing him. It was just unfortunate that she hadn't mentioned this to us before.

To teach him a lesson for being so rude, Evanna had given him the scar on his face. I had always imagined my mentor had picked it up in some battle, but to hear he had got it from Evanna was hilarious. Harkat and I had laughed so hard we had ended up on the floor in stitches.

"Oh!" Evanna giggled. "That was entertaining. Thanks for that, boys."

Mika looked a little ashamed of himself. He had only apologised once but this seemed to be enough for my mentor. "Think nothing of it, Mika." Mr Crepsley told him. "I would have done the same had I been in your place."

"That man," Evanna said tapping Mika on the knee, "is nothing but loyal. I've tried on many occasions to seduce him but he's refused me every time," she winked at Mr Crepsley again and he blushed, his gaze trained on the floor.

"I do apologise for causing such conflict within your little group," she continued, sitting back in her seat. "I'm sure that wasn't what you came for."

"No," Mr Crepsley said bitterly.

"Don't be so sour, Larten," Evanna scolded. "I have information for you, but if you're going to be in a huff with me maybe I'll keep it to myself."

I sat forward, "What sort of information? Is it about the war?" I asked eagerly. Evanna nodded slowly. "Can you tell us who the Lord is, or where to find him?"

She shook her head, "I'm afraid not."

"Can you… tell us who… wins?" Harkat asked, also leaning forward.

"If I told you anything that important I could change the course of the future, and we don't want that now, do we?" Evanna stood and started to pace around the room. "I do not think even Destiny knows who will win, Harkat. It is all up to chance. What I can tell you is still very important, but it will not help you in your quest. I tell you this not to scare you, but to warn you, to prepare you."

The four of us sat forward, watching Evanna pace back and forth. I absently noticed the shadows were keeping their distance, staying to the edges of the room, but they slunk forward slightly as we waited for Evanna to continue.

"You have three chances to kill the Lord of the vampaneze. If at the end of these chances you have still not killed him there will be a final chance. I cannot tell you what form this comes in, but I will tell you that many will die. If the Lord still lives at the end of that, the vampaneze will claim victory. If you kill him, the vampires will be victorious," she sighed. "Of course, if you kill him during the other three chances you will automatically win and the final chance will be eliminated.

"The important thing to remember, though, is that by the end of this, no matter what the outcome, only two of you will be here to witness the rise or fall of your clan," Evanna looked at all of us in turn and then continued to pace.

I swallowed, "What does that mean?"

"It means that during this war, during your hunt for the Lord and your fight to destroy him, one of you is destined to die."

* * *

**Thank you all for your reviews. It means a lot to see that people are actually interested in this! **


	9. Chapter 9

I don't think any of us slept that day.

After Evanna's revelation, we had no longer felt like talking and she left us to spread out around the room and rest. I couldn't decide who I was more worried for – myself or the other two hunters. I tried to picture one of us dying, trying to figure out which death would be easiest to deal with, but it was no use. If I died, Mr Crepsley would be hurt. If Mr Crepsley died, I would be hurt. And if Mika died? I would be upset, as would Mr Crepsley, but really the only person who stood to be hurt from his death was Arra.

But then I figured she'd probably be hurt if _any_ of us were to die.

I squeezed my eyes shut in an attempt to sleep and was actually drifting off before I was jolted awake by screaming. I groaned, and I heard my mentor and Mika do the same. In his panic, Harkat had thrown himself onto the floor, so I helped sit him up. My hand was on his shoulder, ready to wake him, but Evanna stopped me.

I jumped as she appeared next to me. Her large hand was holding my own back. "I need to wake him," I explained, wincing at the volumes of my friend's screams. The nightmare must have been worse than usual.

"Or, you could help him," Evanna said and, without giving me a choice, lifted my hand and placed it on Harkat's forehead. There was a flash of light, a flash of darkness, and then intense heat.

I opened my eyes and gasped. I was no longer in the cave of Lady Evanna, but in a desert. It was vast. And extremely hot. I was sweating after only a moment of being there.

In front of me was a forest of spikes. They looked to be made of some sort of webbing but unlike spider webs they were solid and unbreakable. _Am I in Harkat's dream?_

I looked up through the spike forest. The sky was blood red and dark clouds swirled violently. Huge birds flew gracefully through the clouds, circling around something in the distance I couldn't quite make out. I frowned. _Harkat had never mentioned giant birds before._

It hit me like a slap in the face. Those weren't birds, but _dragons_. I was suddenly afraid and wanted to be free of this… whatever this was. I had no idea what Evanna had done, but I wanted out.

Something dripped on to my foot and I crouched to study it. It was blood and as I stood more droplets hit me. I looked around, trying to see where it was coming from. A groan overhead made me look up and I gasped.

Impaled on the spikes was Harkat's body. He was still alive. It was his blood that was dripping on me. "Harkat!" I yelled and ran at the spikes, trying to find one I could climb to help him. The blood was still splattering me and it was almost as if it was attracted to me, like it couldn't help but fall onto me. "I'm coming, Harkat!"

_It is no use…_

I whipped around at the voice. It was in my head, I could feel it, but that still didn't stop me from surveying the area for a figure. I saw the eyes first, floating through the forest of spikes towards me. They were blood red and devoid of all emotion.

_You cannot save him…_

I tried to back away but only ran into more spikes. I was trapped. The figure was sliding closer. A strange feeling of familiarity washed over me as I watched him emerge from the spikes. "Who are you?" I asked, my voice shaking. Harkat's blood was still hitting me.

_I am the Lord of the Crimson Night…_

The figure was made entirely out of shadows. I could feel the cold radiating off of him, a stark contrast to the heat of the desert. The cold felt like that of the shadows that followed me. He pointed a tendril of shadow at me and it hissed through the air, caressing my face. I could feel my skin burning from its touch and I screamed, trying to push it away.

_You cannot escape this…_

I screamed again but it was cut off as my mouth suddenly filled with blood. I choked and looked around madly for some sort of escape. It occurred to me that the blood was Harkat's and this only made me more desperate. The tendril of shadow was still stroking my face – _burning my flesh_ – but it felt more solid now, like a blade.

_You cannot escape this…_

Just when I thought I could take no more I was tugged violently from behind and felt myself flying through the air. I landed hard on my back and instantly started to struggle as someone tried to help me up. In my mind, the arms I saw were shadows and I lashed out, desperate not to feel that burning cold again.

"Darren, calm down," a voice was saying. "It is okay. Calm down."

I stopped struggling but started to sob instead. I recognised that it was Mr Crepsley who was restraining me and I turned to him, crying into his shoulder as I fought to control my ragged breathing.

"What the hell did you do to him?" I heard Mika demand.

"Harkat will not be having anymore nightmares," she answered, avoiding his question. I felt her presence over me but didn't look around. "Darren? We need to talk." I shook my head against Mr Crepsley's shoulder, but Evanna didn't seem to notice, or care. "I can explain the things you saw."

Despite how far away I wanted to be from her at that moment, I relented, my curiosity getting the better of me. I let go of my mentor and without looking at him or Mika followed Evanna out of her cave. The shadows slunk along after us. When Evanna deemed we were a safe distance from the cave she motioned for me to sit down. She hopped up on the fallen log after me but I didn't look at her.

"Who was that man I saw?" I asked quietly. His eyes burned bright in my mind.

"He is the Master of Shadows," Evanna replied. "He is born of hatred and grief."

"He called himself the 'Lord of the Crimson Night'," I muttered, wringing my hands together nervously.

"Yes," Evanna sighed. "Did he seem familiar to you, Darren?" I nodded slowly, my gaze drifting up to her mismatched eyes. "There are two possible outcomes for his identity. In one, the Lord of the vampaneze becomes him. In the other…" she paused and as she did the shadows crept even closer, hovering just above my shoulders. "In the other, the Master of Shadows is _you_."

* * *

Lady Evanna departed her cave with us a night later. She told us she had important business at the Cirque Du Freak, but would leave us alone once we arrived there.

She had told me not to tell anyone about the Master of Shadows or what I saw in Harkat's dream. If I did, I would ruin the 'grand plan' and bring about a fate worse than death for us all. I didn't know whether that was true or not, but after what I had experienced I didn't want to test it.

I kept quiet. The others seemed to respect that I didn't want to talk about any of it, and they stopped questioning me quickly. Harkat thanked me over and over again, and, true to Evanna's word, he didn't have any more nightmares.

It only took us a week to reach the Cirque Du Freak. I was thankful for that because I found myself cringing away from Evanna whenever she was near. I didn't trust her and was glad to see her head off through the camp as soon as we arrived.

Everything looked pretty much the same as it had the last time we were here. There were a few new trailers and tents, but otherwise it didn't look changed at all.

The same couldn't be said for the people, though. I sought Evra out straight away and was surprised to see him as a grown man. I was even more surprised when he introduced me to his family! He and his wife, Merla, had three children; the eldest and youngest had snake skin like their father, the middle child had no scales.

The surprises kept coming as Evra told me he had named his eldest child after me. The boy's name was Shancus. I felt honoured by that and grateful that after all these years Evra hadn't forgotten about me.

Mr Tall set us up places to sleep and then we joined the rest of the Cirque by the huge campfire, catching up and making new acquaintances and eating our fill of the vast spread of food. Evanna had long ago disappeared and I didn't care what had happened to her. I was at ease here and even the shadows stayed away and left me to relax.

"Ah, just the vampires we were looking for!" a voice said loudly and unexpectedly from behind us and we turned to see who it was.

"No time to relax, I'm afraid," Brynjolf and Renly, the Trackers, grinned broadly at us. "You've got a vampaneze Lord to kill!"


	10. Chapter 10

Brynjolf and Renly wasted no time in filling us in. As we talked they lead us through the Cirque and to the edges of a forest. We had immediately abandoned our meal and the other Cirque performers the moment they had mention the Lord of the vampaneze.

"We've been tracking them for a couple of weeks now," Renly informed us. I remembered the young Tracker as being carefree and always ready to make a joke, but his current mood was a dramatic change; he was serious and looked much older than he had when I had last seen him. Brynjolf was the same, though he had always been serious. It seemed the war was taking its toll on them.

"The way they've been moving has been different from that of other groups we've followed," Brynjolf said, scratching at his stubbly beard. Against the black of the forest he and Renly were almost invisible. Their uniform – nothing more than leather armour stained black – worked perfectly to camouflage them, and even the weapons they wore didn't shine in the moonlight like ours did.

"We haven't got a name for you," Renly continued, "but we're certain one member of the group is the Lord. Most likely it's the one dressed as a servant."

Mika looked confused. As the senior member of our group he had taken charge of the situation. "A servant?"

Renly nodded, "A ruse, Sire, to throw us off track. Dress and treat someone like that and you don't give them a second thought. But if you go in there ready to kill they'll most likely do anything to protect him and reveal his true identity."

"Just be careful, though," Brynjolf added. "They've got a vampet with them."

We glanced at each other, but we couldn't back out now. This was certainly one of our chances for victory. I was excited at the prospect of ending the war so soon. "Are you coming with us?" I asked the two Trackers.

They shook their heads. "We can't help you, remember, cub Prince?" Renly patted my shoulder and grinned. "We'll be waiting back here though, ready to help if one of you comes back missing a body part." When I gave him a look he explained, "There's a big fucker with a battleaxe."

I gulped and exchanged glances with Harkat. The Little Person had offered to fight alongside us, and we had managed to find him a thick handled dagger and a hand axe that he could use. It wasn't much, but we didn't have time to find anything more substantial.

Brynjolf and Renly wished us luck and we set off into the forest.

We hadn't counted on the witch being there.

She was sat among them talking quietly, but she hadn't seemed to notice our approach. The four of us had surrounded the group on four sides, and I was nervously waiting for Mika's signal. The shadows were dancing around me, pulsing in anticipation. I had tried to ignore them since I had learnt of the Master of Shadows but at times they made it impossible.

There were six vampaneze, a pale-skinned vampet, and the servant – or Lord. Evanna made nine, though I wasn't sure whether she would fight with them. I hoped she would stand aside and let us deal with things, but I couldn't be sure. I had thought she was on our side but that apparently wasn't the case.

The signal came just as I was tightening my grip on my sword. A sharp, short whistle, three beats of silence and then all hell broke loose.

The vampaneze were quick to react. The one I darted for blocked my first swing and then my second. On my third I pushed him backwards and he tripped over one of their bags. I followed him down, shoving my sword through his chest before I could properly think about it. I still wasn't comfortable with killing, but tonight it was necessary.

As I straightened up I heard a yell from behind me, and only just ducked in time as the 'fucker with the battleaxe' swung said weapon at my head. I stumbled backwards, trying desperately to not get decapitated. My counter-attacks were useless and soon the vampaneze simply plucked my sword from my hands. My back hit a tree and I shut my eyes as I waited for the killer blow.

It came short, slicing a shallow cut along my chest. My eyes snapped open as Mika tackled the vampaneze to the ground, but he didn't go down easy. He rammed the hilt of his weapon into Mika's face, and the Prince cursed as blood flowed freely down his face. The vampaneze rammed him again, but Mika held on and finally managed to stab his dagger through the vampaneze's throat.

In that brief second of respite I looked around at the scene. Harkat was in the process of despatching a vampaneze. Mr Crepsley had quickly put his own opponent down and was moving to help the Little Person. Another vampaneze lay bloodied on the ground, one of Mika's daggers sticking out of his back.

Five down.

The vampet was hiding behind a tree but didn't look like ready to flee just yet. Mika shakily stood up, gave me a bloody grin and made his way towards the human.

The witch seemed to have fled the scene, perhaps afraid of a confrontation. I didn't dwell on her though. As the other hunters were occupied the servant and the remaining vampaneze made a run for it.

I leapt over bodies, grabbing a sword as I went, and sprinted after them. I couldn't let them get away. The servant was hopping on the back of the vampaneze as I came within range. I swung my arm, aiming for the back of the Lord's neck, but never made the fatal cut.

A gun went off behind me and seconds later I felt the bullet graze my shoulder. I cried out at the sharp pain that followed and dropped the sword, gripping my shoulder tightly as I dodged to the side behind the cover of a tree. With gritted teeth I watched the Lord and remaining vampaneze flit away.

I'd blown our first chance of killing the Lord of the vampaneze.

The shadows rushed in around me, obscuring my vision. I batted angrily at them with my good arm but stopped as the gun went off twice more in quick succession. I heard a mix of cries in the moment that followed, and then silence. I stumbled out from behind the tree and took in the scene in front of me.

Mika was doubled over, clutching his side with both hands. Mr Crepsley was beside him, supporting him, but I couldn't see Harkat. The vampet was now missing his head. _Where was Harkat?_

I made my way back over to them with some difficulty. My chest was seeping blood and my shoulder thumped painfully, but I could see clearly that Mika was worse off so I didn't ask for aid. My eyes scanned the ground frantically. Maybe he had been injured, hurt his leg, and couldn't stand.

"Darren," my mentor called out as I passed them. I didn't stop, having just caught sight of Harkat's hand from behind a tree. "Darren!" I ignored him and rounded the tree.

The bullet had passed straight through one of Harkat's large green eyes and had kept going right out the back of his head. The tree had stopped it in its tracks after that. There was blood everywhere, covering the forest floor, the tree, Harkat's blue robes. His intact eye stared at me. There was no emotion in it; no pain, no fear, no anger.

I fell to my knees and numbly picked up his hand. I let it go and it dropped to the ground, completely limp. The shadows were converging over him, swirling madly in the air. The danced around me too, but I didn't bother to wave them away. They made the air cold and I became cold as they grazed against my skin. They seemed to particularly like my wounds, darting back and forth; it almost looked as if they were lapping at my blood.

"Darren," Mr Crepsley's hand closed over my uninjured shoulder. The shadows dispersed quickly, but I could still see them hanging in the background.

"They got away," I muttered. I was cold, so cold, and I couldn't take my eyes off the gaping hole in the Little Person's face.

"It doesn't matter," Mika's voice was tight. I glanced up at him briefly, noted the bullet wound in his side, and then fixed my eyes on the Little Person again.

"It does…" my voice was hushed, but the cry that followed was anything but. The pain from seeing Harkat dead finally caught up with me and I gave voice to my grief.

* * *

**Sorry for taking so long to update. Life and things got in the way. I hope to update more frequently again from now on, but I won't make any solid promises. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.**


End file.
